A safety belt can only protect you if it is used -- and used properly.

Provide enough safety belts for each person traveling in your
vehicle. Each person needs their own safety belt. Make sure all
safety belts are working properly.

Show you care. Ask passengers in the front and rear seats to
use their safety belts. Most people will gladly buckle up if the
driver asks them to.

Do not start your car until all safety belts are fastened.

Adjust your safety belt so it fits snugly over your hip bones.
It should cross your lap low on the hips, not high across your
stomach.

A shoulder belt should go over your shoulder and across your
body diagonally. It should never be worn under your arm.

The State Police Rollover Simulator

The rollover simulator is designed to demonstrate the importance
of wearing safety seat belts. Two life-size dummies, an adult and
a child are placed in the truck cab unbelted. To simulate a rollover
accident, the cab is mechanically rotated, which causes the dummies
to be ejected. The dummies are returned to the cab and secured with
safety seat belts. Again the cab is rotated and the dummies remain
safely in the cab. To schedule a rollover demonstration for your school
or group please contact your nearest Illinois State Police District.

The Illinois "Child Passenger Protection
Act" - What does it require?

In Illinois, the law states that each driver and passenger
of a motor vehicle must wear a properly adjusted and fastened seat
safety belt.

Provides that whenever a person is transporting a child under age
8, the person is responsible for properly securing the child in an
appropriate child restraint system, which includes a booster seat.
Every person, when transporting a child 8 years of age or older, but
under age 16, is responsible for properly securing that child in a
seat belt. If the vehicle used to transport children under eight years
of age is equipped with lap belts only in the back seat and the child
weighs more than 40 pounds, the child may be transported in the back
seat wearing a lap belt only. If a combination lap and shoulder belt
is available, the child must be secured in a booster seat.

The Illinois Graduated Licensing System requires all occupants must wear safety belts. Any person under the age of 18 who receives a graduated driver’s license, for the first twelve months of the license or until the person reaches the age of 18, whichever occurs sooner; the person may not drive with more than one person in the vehicle who is under the age of 20 unless they are siblings, children, step-siblings, and step children of the driver.

Also, no person may operate any 1965 or later model vehicle unless
the front seats are equipped with two sets of safety belts. A child
must be protected under these Child Passenger Protection Act guidelines:

under the age of eight, secure in a child safety seat.

eight years of age or more, but less than 16 must be secured
in a seat belt or child safety seat.

all occupants must be secured by a safety belt while in the vehicle.

What is the purpose of the Child restraint
act?

The Child Passenger Protection Act was established to protect the
health and safety of children through the proper use of "approved
child restraint systems."Parents or legal guardians of a child under
eight are responsible for providing an approved child safety seat
to anyone who transports his or her child.

What is the penalty for failure to comply
with this law?

Violators of the Child Passenger Protection Act are subject to a $75 fine for the first offense and are eligible for court supervision if they provide the court with documented proof from a child safety seat technician of a properly installed child restraint system and completion of an instructional course on the installation of that restraint system. A subsequent violation is a petty offense with a $200 fine and not eligible for court supervision.

Where can I buy an approved child restraint
seat?

Any child restraint system sold at the many department and discount
stores are approved seats that meet the U.S. Department of Transportation
Standards. Make sure to send in the seat registration card so the
manufacture can reach you in case of a recall. Avoid buying seats
at second hand shops and garage sales as you do not know the history
of the seat.

"Approved child restraint systems" refers to any device which meets
the standards of the United States Department of Transportation.